The "speed the road will allow" or even the design maximum speed of a road has nothing to do with the NSL, since most roads were built long before the NSL came is as a blanket (and theefore not considered on a road by road) basis.
Speed Cameras on the M4 5386were saying : I took it to mean that he exceeds it when it is safe to do so. Which is a completely different issue...
Some NSL roads can be unsafe to drive on at half that speed. I can think of one not far from here, a narrow country lane with blind bends that many have come to grief on.
Other roads can sometimes be driven on safely in excess of the NSL, but this always depends on conditions, traffic congestion etc.
As has beeen pointed out, safety depends on getting the balance right between speed, space and (the probability of) surprise for the particular driver, vehicle and conditions. On a stright road in good conditions, low traffic density and a competent driver is a good car, there is often sufficient space and absence of hazards and potential surprises to allow the NSL to be exceeded safely.
So no, I don't exceed the NSL "whenever I feel like it", I do so only if, having considered the conditions, I believe it is safe to do so. There are probably plenty of times when I might feel like it, for example late for work in a procession following a slow moving vehicle, where it is not possible to go faster without reckless overtaking. So I sit and wait.
There are roads, like the aforementioned NSL country lane, where I would never under any circumstances get anywhere near the NSL, whatever I feel like.
Martin
-- Created on the Iyonix PC - the world's fastest RISC OS computer.
